LONDON - Britain's role in developing new treatments for diseases could be undermined because pressure groups may be drowning out the views of scientists in the debate over genetically modified animals, experts said yesterday. The Royal Society, Britain's academy of scientists, accused anti-GM groups of trying to influence a government advisory committee to reject the use of GM animals in research, in a move which they warned could stall medical progress.
"Scientists need to make sure that the public have access to all the facts in this debate, including a realistic appraisal of the benefits as well as an honest assessment of the risks to animal welfare and the environment," said Professor Patrick Bateson, the vice president of the society. GM animals, whose genetic makeup has been altered, are being used increasingly by scientists to discover the causes and develop new treatments for human diseases ranging from cancers and muscular dystrophy to cystic fibrosis. Mice, which have many of the same genes as humans, are a favourite animal for scientific research. In a statement released ahead of a scientific debate on the use of GM animals, Bateson said groups which are morally opposed to the use of GM animals are imposing their views on the rest of society.
"Most people recognise that we have been genetically engineering animals for thousands of years through selective breeding, and that this has been essential to our progress," Bateson added.
But GeneWatch UK, a watchdog group for genetic technologies, said scientists and drug companies are disregarding the interests of animals in their bid for quick profits.
Helen Wallace, deputy director of GeneWatch, said there is no justification for genetically modifying or cloning animals and called for tighter regulations on their use.
"We are concerned that there are animals suffering unnecessarily from experiments. There is little evidence of what they (scientists) are doing or why," she said in an interview.
Bateson said the pressure groups were trying to convince the Agriculture and Environment Biotechnology Commission to reject GM animal research in a report it will present to the government this summer.
But Wallace said she could not understand how pressure groups are cutting off debate on GM animals.
Bateson defended the use of the animals for scientific purposes and added that safeguards already exist.
"Scientists engaged in research involving GM animals have these concerns in the forefront of their minds. And they understand that public support for their work depends on demonstrating that adequate safeguards are in place and that there are substantial potential benefits to be gained," he said.:
